Cited by 1Digital Games and MediaImpact of Technology on AdolescentsEducational Games and Gamification

Catch Them All: Exploring the Psychological Impact of Playing Pokémon Go

Open access
Wang, Ruoxu, Wu, Mu·2020·Journal of Communication Technology

Abstract

Using the self-determination theory, this study examined the relationship between seven Pokémon GO features and three psychological outcomes – sense of community, sense of companionship, and psychological well-being. Results showed frequency of collecting Pokémon, customizing Pokémon, performing gym related activities, purchasing special items, and taking pictures with the Pokémon led to increased sense of community, sense of companionship, and psychological well-being. In addition, sense of community and sense of companionship mediated the relationship between frequency of using these five Pokémon GO features and psychological well- being respectively.

AI snapshot

Written from the paper’s full text.

TL;DR

Using self-determination theory, this survey of 274 Pokémon GO players finds that several game features are linked to sense of community, sense of companionship, and psychological well-being, with community and companionship mediating some of these links. Collecting and customizing Pokémon were the features most directly tied to well-being, while upgrading Pokémon and using special items showed no impact on the three outcomes.

Key findings

  • Sense of community was positively associated with collecting Pokémon (β = .14, p < .05), performing gym activities (β = .19, p < .01), and purchasing special items (β = .31, p < .001); the final model explained 36.2% of variance.
  • Sense of companionship was positively associated with performing gym activities (β = .20, p < .01), purchasing special items (β = .26, p < .001), customizing Pokémon (β = .16, p < .01), and taking pictures of Pokémon (β = .15, p < .05); the final model explained 36.6% of variance.
  • Psychological well-being was positively associated with collecting Pokémon (β = .25, p < .001) and customizing Pokémon (β = .13, p < .05); the final model explained 21.9% of variance. Mediation analyses showed sense of community and sense of companionship mediated the relationships for gym activities and purchasing special items; taking pictures and customizing operated via companionship only, while collecting operated via community only. Only collecting Pokémon had a significant direct effect on psychological well-being.
  • Upgrading Pokémon and using special items did not have any impact on the three psychological outcomes.

Methods

  • An online Qualtrics survey was conducted in summer 2016 with 274 Pokémon GO players recruited via Amazon Mechanical Turk; a filter question screened for prior play, and participants received 50 cents. The sample was 120 females (43.8%) and 154 males (56.2%), ages 18–60 (M = 30.6, SD = 8.86), 81.8% White and 10.2% Asian, with average daily play of 52 minutes (SD = 65.7).
  • Frequency of seven Pokémon GO features was measured on a seven-point Likert scale. Sense of community was measured with 9 items (α = .95), sense of companionship with 25 items (α = .98), and psychological well-being with 29 items (α = .98).
  • Hierarchical multiple regression tested the first three hypotheses, controlling for race, education, gender, and age. Mediation was tested with Hayes’ PROCESS Macro model 4 using 95% bias-corrected confidence intervals and 2,000 bootstrap resamples.

Limitations

  • Stated by the paper: the sample size was relatively small; participants were mostly White and Asian, with Blacks, Hispanics, and Latinos not represented; and the study focused on Pokémon GO players, who may have high issue involvement toward gaming, so future work should recruit gamers and non-gamers and measure issue involvement.
  • Evident from the text: the cross-sectional survey design cannot establish causal direction, all key measures are self-report, and the MTurk sample from summer 2016 may limit generalizability beyond that early Pokémon GO context.

Model-written summary. Check it against the paper before relying on it.

Integrity signals

Registry

Crossref · 10.51548/joctec-2020-004

Cites

45 of 45 references verified0 citation errors · 0 not checkable

Statistics

Claims the paper makes

2 of 28 cited sources checked · 1 supported · 0 flagged · accuracy not yet measured

  • Premisecitation

    Sense of companionship can be obtained through interacting with a virtual pet.

    “Sense of companionship can also be obtained through interacting with a virtual pet (Chesney & Lawson, 2007;Lawson & Chesney, 2007;Li & Luh, 2017).”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim1 of 3 sources checked
    • cites Chesney & Lawson, 2007 source
    • cites Lawson & Chesney, 2007
    • cites Li & Luh, 2017 source
  • Findingown data

    Frequency of collecting Pokémon, customizing Pokémon, performing gym-related activities, purchasing special items, and taking pictures with Pokémon led to increased psychological well-being.

    “Results showed frequency of collecting Pokémon, customizing Pokémon, performing gym related activities, purchasing special items, and taking pictures with the Pokémon led to increased sense of community, sense of companionship, and psychological well-being.”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim
  • Findingown data

    The final regression model for sense of community accounted for a total of 36.2% of the variance, F(11, 262) = 13.49, p < .001.

    “The final model accounted for a total of 36.2% of the variance in the dependent variable, F(11, 262) = 13.49,p < .001.”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim
  • Findingown data

    Frequency of collecting Pokémon, customizing Pokémon, performing gym-related activities, purchasing special items, and taking pictures with Pokémon led to increased sense of community.

    “Results showed frequency of collecting Pokémon, customizing Pokémon, performing gym related activities, purchasing special items, and taking pictures with the Pokémon led to increased sense of community, sense of companionship, and psychological well-being.”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim
  • Findingown data

    Control variables (race, education, gender, and age) accounted for 2.9% of the variance in sense of community, F(4, 269) = 2.01, p = .09.

    “In step one, control variables (race, education, gender, and age) accounted for 2.9% of the variance, F(4, 269) = 2.01, p = .09.”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim
  • Classified as probably not a substantial claim. 19
  • May combine two claims. 16
  • Probably not a substantial claim: may not pass S3 (load-bearing).

    Premisecitation

    Online gamers usually have a sense of community when they are playing games or modifying games.

    “Gaming literature showed online gamers usually have a sense of community when they are playing games (O'Connor, Longman, White, & Obst, 2015) or modifying games (Poor, 2013).”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim1 of 2 sources checked
    • cites O'Connor, Longman, White, & Obst, 2015 source

      The Results report that all interviewed participants experienced a sense of community associated with playing World of Warcraft. That supports the playing-games portion attributed to O’Connor et al., but the study’s WoW participants do not establish that online gamers generally or usually have this experience. The modifying-games portion is cited to Poor (2013), not this source. (LLM, conf=0.83)

      Experimental — accuracy not yet measured
    • cites Poor, 2013 source
  • Probably not a substantial claim: may not pass S3 (load-bearing).

    Findingown data

    Control variables together accounted for 2.4% of the variance in the sense of companionship.

    “Control variables together accounted for 2.4% of the variance in the sense of companionship (F(4, 269) = 2.67, p = .03).”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim
  • Probably not a substantial claim: may not pass S3 (load-bearing).

    Premisecitation

    Self-determination theory holds that individuals have three basic psychological needs: autonomy, competence, and relatedness.

    “The primary proposition of self-determination theory is that individuals hold three basic psychological needs: autonomy, competence, and relatedness (Ryan & Deci, 2000).”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim0 of 1 sources checked
    • cites Ryan & Deci, 2000

      Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.

  • Probably not a substantial claim: may not pass S3 (load-bearing). May combine two claims.

    Study design and conductown data

    Sense of companionship was measured with 25 items adopted from the companionship for artificial pets scale (Luh, Li, & Kao, 2014) and had a Cronbach's alpha of .98.

    “Sense of companionship (M = 3.5, SD = 1.34,Cronbach's a = .98)was measured by 25 items on a seven-point Likert scale (1 = strongly disagree; 7 = strongly agree) adopted from the companionship for the artificial pets scale (Luh, Li, & Kao, 2014).”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim0 of 1 sources checked
    • cites Luh, Li, & Kao, 2014

      Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.

  • Classified as probably not a substantial claim.

    Study design and conductown data

    The regression analyses controlled for race, education, gender, and age.

    “Four demographic variables, race (dummy coded), education (dummy coded), gender, and age, were entered as control variables on an initial step”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim
  • Classified as probably not a substantial claim. May combine two claims.

    Study design and conductown data

    Psychological well-being was measured with 29 items from Hills and Argyle (2001) and had a Cronbach's alpha of .98.

    “Psychological well-being (M = 4.62, SD = 1.15,Cronbach's a = .98)was measured using 29 items on a seven-point Likert scale (1 = strongly disagree; 7 = strongly agree) from Hills and Argyle (2001).”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim0 of 1 sources checked
    • cites Hills and Argyle (2001)

      Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.

  • Probably not a substantial claim: may not pass S3 (load-bearing). May combine two claims.

    Study design and conductown data

    Sense of community was measured with nine items adopted from Peterson, Spear, and McMillan (2008) and had a Cronbach's alpha of .95.

    “Sense of community (M = 4.00, SD = .91,Cronbach's a = .95)was measured by nine items adopted from Peterson, Spear, and McMillan (2008) on a seven-point Likert scale”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim0 of 1 sources checked
    • cites Peterson, Spear, and McMillan (2008)

      Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.

  • May combine two claims.

    Interpretationreasoning

    These two features will not impact sense of community and sense of companionship nor would they influence psychological well-being.

    “Thus, these two features will not impact sense of community and sense of companionship nor would they influence psychological well-being.”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim
    • Rests on an assumption: Sense of companionship and sense of community belong to the need in relatedness.
  • Classified as probably not a substantial claim. May combine two claims.

    Premisecitation

    Catching Pokémon and winning battles are two major motivations for playing Pokémon GO.

    “Another study also identified catching Pokémon and winning battles as the two major motivations for playing Pokémon GO (Zach & Tussyadiah, 2017).”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim0 of 1 sources checked
    • cites Zach & Tussyadiah, 2017 source
  • Probably not a substantial claim: may not pass S3 (load-bearing). May combine two claims.

    Premisecitation

    Sense of companionship can be obtained through interacting with a virtual pet or a socially assistive robot.

    “Sense of companionship can be obtained through interacting with a virtual pet (Chesney & Lawson, 2007) or a socially assistive robot (Fasola & Mataric, 2012).”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim0 of 2 sources checked
    • cites Chesney & Lawson, 2007 source
    • cites Fasola & Mataric, 2012 source
  • Probably not a substantial claim: may not pass S3 (load-bearing).

    Study design and conductreasoning

    The study's focus on Pokémon GO players is a limitation.

    “Another limitation of the study is that its focus on Pokémon GO players.”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim
  • May combine two claims.

    Interpretationreasoning

    Collecting Pokémon can offer Pokémon GO players a sense of community, while customizing Pokémon can offer Pokémon GO players a sense of companionship.

    “Collecting Pokémon can offer Pokémon GO players a sense of community, while customizing Pokémon can offer Pokémon GO players a sense of companionship.”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim
  • Probably not a substantial claim: may not pass S2 (checkable). May combine two claims.

    Interpretationreasoning

    These two features were likely designed to increase the entertaining and enjoyment aspect of the game; they may fulfill the need in competence.

    “likely that these two features were designed to increase the entertaining and enjoyment aspect of the game; these two features may fulfill the need in competence.”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim
  • May combine two claims.

    Interpretationreasoning

    Sense of community and sense of companionship are two precursors of psychological well-being, so frequency of collecting and customizing Pokémon will lead to increased psychological well-being.

    “Sense of community and sense of companionship are two precursors of psychological well-being, so it makes sense that frequency of collecting and customizing Pokémon will lead to increased psychological well-being.”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim
    • Rests on an assumption: Sense of community and sense of companionship are two precursors of psychological well-being.
  • May combine two claims.

    Interpretationcitation

    The finding corroborates previous findings of positive effects of online game playing and modification on sense of community and extends the knowledge to an AR mobile game context.

    “It also corroborates the previous findings of the positive effects of online game playing (O'Connor et al., 2005) and modification (Poor, 2013) on sense of community and extends the knowledge to an AR mobile game context.”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim0 of 2 sources checked
    • cites O'Connor et al., 2005

      Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.

    • cites Poor, 2013 source
  • Probably not a substantial claim: may not pass S3 (load-bearing). May combine two claims.

    Premisecitation

    Previous studies in online community context indicated that community building and participation were positively associated with individuals' sense of community.

    “This finding is consistent with the results of previous studies in the context of online community, which indicated that community building (Wang et al., 2016) and participation (Tonteri et al., 2011) were positively associated with individuals' sense of community.”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim0 of 2 sources checked
    • cites Wang et al., 2016 source
    • cites Tonteri et al., 2011 source
  • May combine two claims.

    Study design and conductnone given

    The major participants were Whites and Asians; Blacks, Hispanics, and Latinos were not represented.

    “The major participants were Whites and Asians.Blacks, Hispanics, and Latinos were not represented.”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim
  • Classified as probably not a substantial claim.

    Interpretationown data

    This study contributes to the literature on psychological impact of playing mobile AR games by showcasing the linkage between specific game features and psychological outcomes.

    “Theoretically, it contributes to the literature on psychological impact of playing mobile AR games by showcasing the linkage between specific game features and psychological outcomes.”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim
  • Probably not a substantial claim: may not pass S3 (load-bearing), S4 (based). May combine two claims.

    Interpretationreasoning

    Collecting Pokémon and purchasing special items may also rely on group work.

    “Similarly, collecting Pokémon and purchasing special items may also rely on the group work.”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim
  • Classified as probably not a substantial claim.

    Premisecitation

    Sense of community and sense of companionship are concepts closely associated with relatedness.

    “Sense of community and sense of companionship are concepts closely associated with relatedness as they are all dealing with one's feeling of being involved in a social environment (Ryan & Deci, 2000).”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim0 of 1 sources checked
    • cites Ryan & Deci, 2000

      Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.

  • Classified as probably not a substantial claim.

    Premisecitation

    Playing Pokémon GO is associated with increased psychological well-being.

    “A previous study showed playing Pokémon GO was associated with increased psychological well-being (Bonus et al., 2018).”
    • Also stated in: § Psychological Well-being · plain
      “Recent Pokémon GO studies also detected the positive linkage between playing Pokémon GO and psychological well-being (Oleksy & Wnuk, 2017;Bonus et al., 2018;Zach & Tussyadiah, 2017).”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim0 of 3 sources checked
    • cites Bonus et al., 2018

      Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.

    • cites Oleksy & Wnuk, 2017 source
    • cites Zach & Tussyadiah, 2017 source
  • Probably not a substantial claim: may not pass S3 (load-bearing).

    Premisecitation

    Previous literature shows sense of community is the mediator between personal journaling and autonomy.

    “Previous literature shows sense of community is the mediator between personal journaling and autonomy (Stavrositu & Sundar, 2013).”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim0 of 1 sources checked
    • cites Stavrositu & Sundar, 2013

      Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.

  • May combine two claims.

    Interpretationreasoning

    More frequently collecting Pokémon heightens players' sense of community, which would lead to better psychological well-being.

    “on the other hand, more frequently collecting Pokémon heightens players' sense of community, which would lead to better psychological well-being.”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim
  • Probably not a substantial claim: may not pass S3 (load-bearing).

    Premisecitation

    Interacting with a socially assistive robot could enhance sense of companionship.

    “Previous literature suggests interacting with a socially assistive robot could enhance sense of companionship (Birnbaum, Mizrahi, Hoffman, Reis, Finkel, & Sass, 2016;Fasola & Mataric, 2012).”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim0 of 2 sources checked
    • cites Birnbaum, Mizrahi, Hoffman, Reis, Finkel, & Sass, 2016 source
    • cites Fasola & Mataric, 2012 source
  • May combine two claims.

    Premisecitation

    Sense of community and sense of companionship are antecedents of psychological well-being.

    “Previous literature indicates sense of community and sense of companionship are antecedents of psychological well-being (Ryff & Singer, 1996).”
    Quote in the paperSubstantial claim0 of 1 sources checked
    • cites Ryff & Singer, 1996

      Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.

  • Probably not a substantial claim: may not pass S3 (load-bearing). May combine two claims.

    Premisecitation

    Research has shown that sense of companionship can provide psychological satisfaction, which may facilitate building the long-term relationship.

    “Research has shown that sense of companionship can provide psychological satisfaction, which may facilitate building the long-term relationship (Mival & Benyon, 2007).”
    Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim0 of 1 sources checked
    • cites Mival & Benyon, 2007

      Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.

26 of 26
  • The paper relies on this without support.

    All seven Pokémon GO features are frequently used by Pokémon GO players.

    “All seven features are frequently used by Pokémon Go players.”
  • The paper relies on this without support.

    Pokémon GO is a community-based game.

    “Pokémon Go is a community-based game.”
  • The paper relies on this without support.

    When Pokémon GO players perform gym-related activities such as winning a battle in a gym, they need to cooperate with other Pokémon GO players to achieve this goal.

    “When Pokémon GO players are performing gym related activities such as winning the battle in a gym, they need to cooperate with other Pokémon GO players to achieve this goal.”
  • The paper relies on this without support.

    Some Pokémon GO players like to collect Pokémon with a group of players instead of playing alone.

    “In addition, some Pokémon GO players like to collect Pokémon with a group of players instead of playing alone”
  • The paper relies on this without support.

    A sense of community and a sense of companionship are two major psychological benefits of playing mobile augmented reality games.

    “Meanwhile, a sense of community and a sense of companionship are two major psychological benefits of playing mobile augmented reality games.”
  • The paper relies on this without support.

    Pokémon GO's function allowing players to choose a Pokémon as their partner is an example of the companionship function of Pokémon GO.

    “Pokémon GO's recent new function -allowing players to choose a Pokémon as their partner so that the player and the partner Pokémon can catch Pokémon together -is another example of the companionship function of Pokémon GO.”
  • The paper relies on this without support.

    Other frequently used Pokémon GO features, such as customizing Pokémon and taking pictures with Pokémon, are understudied.

    “However, besides these two motivations, other frequently used Pokémon GO features, such as customizing Pokémon and taking pictures with Pokémon, are understudied.”
  • The paper relies on this without support.

    Sense of community and sense of companionship are understudied in previous Pokémon GO studies.

    “These two concepts are understudied in previous Pokémon GO studies.”
  • The paper relies on this without support.

    The behaviors of customization, taking pictures, and purchasing special items were intended by players to build a long-term relationship with the Pokémon.

    “The behaviors of customization, taking pictures, and purchasing special items were all intended to build a long-term relationship with the Pokémon.”
  • The paper relies on this without support.

    Pokémon can be considered a form of virtual pets.

    “Since Pokémon can also be considered as a form of virtual pets”
  • The paper relies on this without support.

    Customizing and taking pictures with Pokémon are typical interaction behaviors between Pokémon GO players and the Pokémon.

    “Customizing and taking picture with Pokémon are typical interaction behaviors between the Pokémon GO players and the Pokémon.”
  • The paper relies on this without support.

    When Pokémon GO players perform gym-related activities, they usually need to accomplish this task with their teammates.

    “When Pokémon GO players perform the gym-related activities, they usually need to accomplish this task with their teammates.”
  • The paper relies on this without support.

    Sense of community and sense of companionship are two precursors of psychological well-being.

    “Sense of community and sense of companionship are two precursors of psychological well-being”
  • The paper relies on this without support.

    Sense of companionship and sense of community belong to the need in relatedness.

    “However, both sense of companionship and sense of community belong to the need in relatedness.”
14 of 14

Statistics recomputed

Every reported test result, recomputed from its test statistic and degrees of freedom. A result shows as not adding up only once an independent check has confirmed it.

  • ConsistentF(4, 269) = 2.01reported p = .09 · recomputed p = .093

    “F(4, 269) = 2.01, p = .09”

  • ConsistentF(11, 262) = 13.49reported p < .001 · recomputed p < .001

    “F(11, 262) = 13.49,p < .001”

  • ConsistentF(4, 269) = 2.67reported p = .03 · recomputed p = .033

    “F(4, 269) = 2.67, p = .03”

  • ConsistentF(11, 262) = 13.77reported p < .001 · recomputed p < .001

    “F(11, 262) = 13.77,p < .001”

  • ConsistentF(11, 262) = 6.68reported p < .001 · recomputed p < .001

    “F(11, 262) = 6.68, p < .001”

5 of 5

Self-check

Percentages, sums and reported differences re-computed from the paper’s own numbers.

Each contradiction between two passages listed here was confirmed by an independent check.

  • Abstract overstates which outcomes the five features predict

    Major

    The abstract says the listed features increased all three outcomes. Table 1, for example, shows taking pictures of Pokémon significantly predicts companionship but not community or psychological well-being.

  • Discussion describes both mediators for features with only one mediation path

    Minor

    The discussion describes community and companionship as two parallel mediators for a list that includes collecting and customizing Pokémon. The results instead say collecting was mediated only by community, while customizing was mediated only by companionship.

  • Companionship model variance does not add up

    Minor

    The reported 2.4% explained by controls plus the additional 32.8% explained by game features totals 35.2%, not the reported final-model value of 36.6%.

    Reported 36.6 · recomputed 35.2

3 of 3

Cites

Flagged first, then by citations

Research works printed but not linked: 2

  1. Mival, O., & Benyon, D. (2007). Introducing the COMPANIONS project: Intelligent, persistent, personalised multimodal interfaces to the internet. Proceedings of AISB2007, Newcastle.
  2. Wang, R., & Wu, M. (2020). Catch them all: Exploring the psychological impact of playing Pokémon Go. Journal of Communication Technology, 3(1), 53-72. DOI: 10.51548/joctec-2020-004

Cited by

Sorted by citations

Authors
Wang, R., & Wu, M.
Affiliations
  • University of Memphis (US)
  • California State University Los Angeles (US)
Corresponding author
Wang, Ruoxu
Venue
Journal of Communication Technology
Published
2020
Volume
3
Issue
1
ISSN
2694-3883 (ISSN-L)
OpenAlex
W3134281441
Cited by
1
References
43
Citations by year
2026: 1
FWCI
0.00
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Licence
cc-by-nc-sa
Locations
Journal of Communication Technology (publishedVersion, cc-by-nc-sa)
Topics
  • Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Digital Games and Media
  • Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Impact of Technology on Adolescents
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Developmental and Educational Psychology › Educational Games and Gamification
Keywords
Pokémon Go, augmented reality games, self-determination theory, sense of community, psychological well-being, game features, mediating effect, mobile games

About these checks

Registry, retraction, Cites and statistics results are computed, not judged, with one exception: a printed reference that no index lists is read once by a model before it counts as a citation error. Claims are extracted by a model and kept only when their quote appears verbatim in the text; each cited source is then checked, with a model’s help, for whether it says what the claim relies on. Those verdicts can be wrong — read the claim’s quote and the cited source before relying on one.

Claims read by deepseek-v4.1-flash under definition version 3 (extract-v3) on 2026-11-02.

Classified by jev-1.13-20260917 (gold-guideline-v0.2) on 2026-11-02.

Cited sources are checked by gpt-6-sol.

Statistics and arithmetic are recomputed, not judged.

Confidence bands are shown only for fields calibrated on our annotated test set. None is calibrated yet, so no band is shown.

What counts as a claim ›How we measure confidence ›How we check this ›

Are you an author, or do you see a problem with this page? Request a review